I absolutely loved this book by Maurene Goo, and could not put it down. I was rooting for the characters to fall in love and wanted to slap them at the same time. The father/daughter relationships are not always seen in a favorable light in YA literature and Ms. Goo has done a great job in both her books to promote that relationship. If you are looking for a book to feel good about, The Way You Make Me Feel will be that book. I would love a sequel to find out what happens senior year!!

This book is a perfect summer read! Why? Because mainly set during the summer. swoon romance, wonderful father-daughter relationship, character growth and more. For me, the lead character, Clara, was a little hard to get behind for the first few chapters but then she started to grow on me.
Surprisingly Clara Father was my favorite character in this story. He’s such a caring parent, something I enjoy in books. There was one scene where the lead character finds something out about her Father and mother’s relationship that pulled at my heartstrings. How social media plays into this story but in a way that I didn't see coming. I had fun with this book, I liked to see how the characters grow and change and how having the right people about you chance affect you.

However, it’s was filled with teen angst, moody, on and off throughout the book.

Therefore, looking for a Moving. Swoon, diversity read the get your hands on a copy of this book!

I absolutely loved this book! It was cute and amazing. I loved all of the characters including the extremely frustrating ones. Clara was a difficult narrator, but Goo still made me love her, which was really impressive. Hamlet is obviously amazing, but I also really love Rose! The friendship in this book was great and really inspiring. I loved this book. It's a feel good book that can put anyone in a better mood!

This is a cute summer read that features an MC who has a lot of growing up to do (luckily she does!). Clara starts out pretty unlikeable—she’s a jokester and a prankster, but it all feels a little mean-spirited. She has a never-try attitude and doesn’t really care when things blow up in her face. On the one hand, it was refreshing to see a girl portrayed in a stereotypically guy role, but on the other hand, it was hard to get behind her. Things get a little better when she ends up befriending her nemesis (a mean girl who turns out to be a lot more complex than the stereotype) and falls for a nerdy kid who’s the absolute sweetest. She also learns to appreciate her dad a whole lot more. I was a little sad that we didn’t get more closure with her two best friends, who she just sort of dropped (which was maybe okay—she grew away from them, which happens), but otherwise I thought the themes were handled in a positive way. This book won’t bowl you over with its profound messages, but it’s an enjoyable read with diverse characters who end up having more substance than you first expect. Overall, I give it 4/5 stars.

***Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. No other compensation was given and all opinions are my own.***

I wasn't able to fall in love with Goo's previous book, but this one made me fall head over heels with the whole thing-- Clara, the great main character, Hamlet, her very swoony love interest, her father who was super adorable, Rose, the goody two shoes enemy then friend, and even her mom. I loved how Clara begins as the rebel teenager who doesn't care about anything, and then gets into big trouble, throwing her and her mortal enemy, Rose together on her father's food truck. And it's a combo of Korean and Brazilian food? Swoon my foodie stomach!!! Everything hit the right notes, the relationships, the plot, the characters, the food (I'm starving now and need to eat something tasty), and the back 10% made me sob like a baby in the best way possible. I love love love this book and you need to pick it up STAT!

Title: The Way You Make Me Feel
Author: Maurene Goo
Genre: YA
Rating: 4 out of 5

Clara Shin and her friends are rebellious and anti-anything-too-trendy-and-popular. Clara is always pulling pranks and cracking jokes to keep people at arm’s length, but when a school prank goes too far, Clara ends up sentenced to work her dad’s food truck with her enemy all summer long.

Rose Carver is an uptight goody-two-shoes, but as Clara is forced to spend time with her, she realizes Rose is really just from a family of overachievers and she is scared to fail. She’s never had a friend, and she and Clara work to figure out their relationship while working the KoBra.

When Clara meets Hamlet, the boy who works the coffee shop near one of their stops, she’s intrigued, but he’s not her usual type at all; Hamlet is much too nice and polite for that. Then Clara realizes the way things have always been may not be all there is out there, and who she’s always been may not be based on the truth.

I loved this book! Clara’s relationship with her single dad is funny, open, and absolutely perfect. She’s always thought her social influencer mother was the thoughtful parent, but she learns that things aren’t always what they seem.

Clara’s sarcasm and biting humor were over-the-top in the beginning, but as her summer “punishment” opened her eyes to the truth, she truly changes as a person. Hamlet is almost too good to be true, and he serves as a great foil for Clara’s pessimistic worldview. Lots of humor and social commentary in this one, making it a fun, enjoyable read.

Maurene Goo is a young adult author who lives in California. The Way You Make Me Feel is her newest novel.

(Galley provided by Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR) in exchange for an honest review.)

The Way You Make Me Feel took me by surprise. I have read I Believe in a Thing Called Love last year. It was fun, has a great father-daughter relationship and friendship goals but I was still disappointed with some aspects so I was a bit scared to pick this up. I didn’t hope for anything. Little did I know, this was worth keeping my hopes high on.

On the beginning, it focused more on pranks and high school rivalries which made me thought that this might become shallow and ordinary. I thought that this will all be about the typical high school drama. But I was proven wrong. It was more about fun and rivalry at the beginning but it slowly began to tackle friendship – enemies to friends trope and friendship drifting apart – love, Asian immigrants – their lives in America, how they still carry on their traditions and keep their culture even if they are far away from home – family, and teenage mistakes, and became more meaningful and deep as the story progressed. This book has that really good blend of fun and depth.

I liked Clara. Not in a way that I had a deep connection with her because I didn’t. I just like how real she is – I’ve seen her good and bad side. I also liked her character development. She went from someone who uses pranks and the I-don’t-give-a-d&mn attitude as a defense mechanism to someone who’ve learned to accept reality and the emotions knocking to the door of her heart to let them in.

Rose’s character development is also on point. I liked her from the very beginning despite being the bossy type. She is just nice and was actually a loner so she made her being a student leader and geek as a defense mechanism. I liked how she also slowly let the real her be shown.

Hamlet is so cute. I can’t say that I loved him though, but I liked his personality. He’s not my favorite but I liked how independent, funny, friendly, thoughtful and nice he is.

I loved the characters in general but expect for one. Clara’s mom was the only character I truly despise in this book. She is just an irresponsible mother who chose her life being a social media influencer and “living a dream” rather than being a responsible mother for Clara. You can give me 100 reasons why you liked her *IF you do* and I still won’t be liking her.

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I really adore and love how diverse this book is – from the characters to the Asian cultures that were brought into spotlight. I loved seeing different Asian cultures and meeting diverse characters from different Asian counties in one book. Clara’s family is Korean-Brazillian, Rose is Brown, Hamlet is Chinese and Clara and Rose also had a Filipino classmate. There is also a gay character, although this book focused more on racial issues rather than sexuality issues and that character wasn’t actually given enough spotlight because some characters were suddenly set aside.

Again, this Maurene Goo book left me lessons. First – through Clara’s parents – is that rushing things has its own consequences. . Clara’s parents had her when they were just teens. So now that they are older, they are now separated, realizing that they are not meant to stay together forever. Impulsive decisions such as rushing things changed their lives forever – which brings us to the second lesson. Time doesn’t wait for anyone. I know it’s painful, but the truth is Clara was the reason why her parents wasn’t able to reach their dreams. If Clara came when they are finally ready – financially, etc – and are already satisfied with how far they’ve come in reaching their dreams, things would probably be better. So now that they are older, Clara’s mom chose to live her dream that made her sacrifice her family – she missed most of Clara’s life. Who’s suffering? Clara and Adrian. (I am not going to say Clara’s mom is also suffering because like what I’ve said, I hate her for leaving them). While Adrian chose to be with her daughter Clara and gave up on chasing his dream/s. Third is that cherish the persons who really cares for you. You may not know, you may be having a hard time to see, but there are people who actually care for you. And you shouldn’t lose them. You got to keep them. And lastly, it is okay to feel. It is okay to feel.

Lastly, this book spoke so much to me. As someone who grew up without a father, Clara and Adrian’s father-daughter relationship got me into tears which is why this book became special. There were surreal heartfelt moments between Clara and his father, Adrian. Moments that you will really feel in your heart. This books spoke so much about the relationship and bond between a father and a daughter that is unbreakable.

Overall, Maurene Goo did not disappoint me this time. The way this book made me feel is not something I’ll easily forget. I will recommend this book for those who are finding a cute, funny but also touching read that gives spotlight to Asian characters and Asian culture.

3.5. "KoBra" Stars

ARC via NetGalley.

Thank you, Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)

First of all, I'm a little late with this review, but I'm totally blaming life for that one. *hides behinds hands*

I was super excited to get a chance to read this book because OMG, a half-Brazilian main character. I didn't even mind that this wasn't written by a Brazilian author (at least I haven't found any info saying the author is Brazilian) because I thought the representation was pretty decent.

Clara and her parents had some moments that were just bold and loud and charming in a Brazilian way. Clara wasn't an easy character to get behind because she was a little extra, but she was full of life and had a bold sense of humor, which is something that immediately makes me think of my people. Plus, she ate fried-egg sandwiches and drank caldo de cana, which will always be a BR thing for me. I love those things and I'm hungry just thinking about them, by the way.

As far as I'm concerned, the rep of different cultures was of this book's best features. Clara was half-Korean and, although I can't say I know much about Korean culture, I could still tell the elements were well represented. And the diversity didn't stop with the main character. We had a strong, smart and amazing young black woman with a beautiful and well-structured family. A cute Chinese guy who was an absolute dream. And smart talks about diversity and feminism. I really, really loved all of that.

Something I also adored was Clara's relationship with her Dad. They had a strong bond that was built founded in friendship and freedom and respect. Clara did break some of that respect toward the end, but it felt like a necessary step so she could see and appreciate her father, who was a great man. I'm a little in love with Clara's father and I don't care.

My third favorite thing about this book was Clara and Rose's friendship. It started out with Clara annoying me for being unfair to Rose, but it developed into a beautiful bond between these girls that were nothing like each other. Rose learned how to let go a little with Clara, and she learned to take things a little more seriously with Rose. They complemented each other and I can see that friendship lasting for a long time.

As to Hamlet, the love interest, all I have to say is: ADORBS!!! TOTALLY ADORBS!!!

Now, to the thing I wished had been handled better: Clara's friendship with Felix and Patrick. I understand growing up and changing can lead people to drift apart from old friends and find new ones, but I didn't approve of the way Clara did this. It often felt like she was becoming "too good" for the guys who used to hang out with her before, and she treated them poorly instead of being honest with them. It left a bad taste in my mouth.

I also had a hard time buying how Clara's dad simply left two teenagers in charge of his food truck for so long without supervision after they had just started working there. It sounded a little immature and not believable, considering he had high hopes for his food business.

Having said that, The Way You Make Me Feel turned out to be a fun read with a main character that is so out there she made me laugh out loud a few times; tons of Brazilian references that actually made sense (not something I see often in books); food that made my mouth water; amazing friendship and cute romance; and a father-daughter relationship that was goals and made me tear up. The book had a slower start, but after the 50% mark it really won me over.

If your looking for a light fun contemporary pick this one up! I loved how fun this story was and how delicious it made food trucks sound. I loved seeing diverse characters and families and seeing the relationship bloom. If you don’t want something heavy and want a light fun story please try this one,

Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to finish this book. I found the MC to be way too bratty for my taste. I’ve read other reviews and I know that there was a great chance of character growth, but this book just wasn’t for me.

I am so happy with this book. It lived up to my expectations and has solidified Goo as one of my new favorite authors. She has been added to my list of automatic reads for sure. If you like love/hate friendship stories you need to read this book. I would highly recommend adding this to everyone’s summer reading lists. It is fun, different, and a quick read. It has funny moments but it is balanced by some real life issues.

Originally posted on Forever Young Adult on 2018 May 13.

BOOK REPORT for The Way You Make Me Feel by Maurene Goo

Cover Story: Fuc(hsia) Yeah?
BFF Charm: Eventually
Swoonworthy Scale: 4
Talky Talk: Straight Up Diverse
Bonus Factors: East Asian Diaspora, Family, Tasty Business
Relationship Status: Can We Have a Do-Over?

Cover Story: Fuc(hsia) Yeah?

I'm loving that the model looks like Clara and she's rocking KoBra food truck merch (not to mention her great eyebrows), but I don't know what's going on with the pose? It's like a Top Model challenge in which Tyra asks for embarrassed but pretty. Although between this and I Believe in a Thing Called Love, I am here for the musical journey that is now Maurene Goo's bibliography.

The Deal:

When Clara Shin pulls off an elaborate prank at junior prom and gets into a fight with high-strung goody-goody Rose Carver, both girls must spend the summer working at Clara's dad's food truck, the KoBra. It's a nightmare, obvs. Until it kind of isn't? Maybe Clara even likes hanging out with Rose and giving a shizz about her dad's business or, like, anything? Could this lifelong slacker be turning over a new leaf?

BFF Charm: Eventually

It's not that I wouldn't be friends with Clara, but she wouldn't want to be friends with me more. She starts off in that too-cool-for-school crowd, whereas I'm pretty much twinsies with her overachieving nemesis, Rose, so we wouldn't be a compatible hang right out of the gate. Although maybe I can fast tracked into friendship when Clara and I bond over misanthropy and feminist rage. (And get a discount at the KoBra, right?)

Swoonworthy Scale: 4

Genuine and sweet, Hamlet Wong (yes, I know, and he does, too) has a heart of gold and abs of steel. And I should have been all for that, except I, um, shipped a couple that turned out to be not romantic at all. Blame the platonic enemistry (frenemistry?) between Clara and Rose!

Talky Talk: Straight Up Diverse

Clara's corner of Los Angeles provides a delightful and diverse kickoff to any summer reading list. (I swear, YA books keep making me want to go to Hollywood Forever.) But fun doesn't have to mean frivolous; Clara's gradual character development feels earned, and this book drops so many truths that my e-copy has as many highlights as an '00s pop star's hairstyle.

Bonus Factor: East Asian Diaspora

Clara's parents were both Brazilian-born Koreans, and Hamlet grew up in Beijing, where his parents still reside, so the Shins and the Wongs represent for* both immigrants and Asians from outside of North America. (And the Asian squat in YA, omggggg I DIE.)

Also, I'd like to thank Maurene Goo for opening my eyes to something that I had previously assumed everybody did the same way, much like putting on a bra, with her use of "an FOB" ('eff oh bee' vs. my preference of 'fob' for 'fresh off the boat'). We contain multitudes!

*Not to be confused for 'are representative of', duh.

Bonus Factor: Family

Almost all the family members in this book are kind of awesome: Adrian's a young DILF dad who has been raising Clara on his own; Rose's parents are like alternate universe Obamas who kept practicing law instead of going into politics, and her little brother is an adorable munchkin; and Hamlet's surrogate grandparents are a cantankerous match made in heaven. Not so much pulling their own weight are Clara's social media influencer mom and Hamlet's absentee parents, whose absences make for complicated relationships with their respective kids.

Bonus Factor: Tasty Business

SO MUCH TASTY FOOD, with Adrian's Korean-Brazilian fusion food truck, the KoBra, being the main source of noms. Clara and Rose also get tons of experience with running the KoBra, for those who are as curious about food truck logistics as I am.

Relationship Status: Can We Have a Do-Over?

So, this is a bit awkward. Not about spending time with your compelling characters on the KoBra, Book, but I was totally distracted by things that weren't there. I kept looking for signs for what I thought was going on rather than paying attention to what actually existed. But now that I know what the deal is, we should try this again so that I can give you a fair shake.

The Way You Make Me Feel will be available on May 8th.

I'm going to be honest with you, I didn't really like Clara at first. She's the kind of person who doesn't care about anything. (She likes her friends and her parents, but she basically lives to be as deadpan as possible.) And OK yes, to be fair, I skew towards this end of the spectrum, too. But I also care about things. And I care about things VERY LOUDLY.

And in the beginning, all Clara cared about was playing pranks and making people feel dumb for caring. And after she ruins prom, she has to spend the whole summer working for her dad's food truck. With her nemesis, Rose. (Can I just say I feel really badly for Rose about that?)

But she grows so much. And even though she's emotionally stunted, she becomes this amazing person. 

I love Maurene Goo's books and the way they make me so completely invested in just a few paragraphs. (I immediately loved Rose, even though she overreacts.) And I love the way that the parents are fantastic. 

This book is completely charming. Recommended.

I didn't love this one. Clara wasn't very likable, but I enjoyed the cast of side characters (except for the mom - jeesh), and just how diverse the characters were. There was maybe one or two white people in the entire book? It was honestly refreshing.

SUCH a fantastic read--Maurene Goo has knocked it out of the park again! The voice, humor, and fun plot made it so I couldn't put this book down.

4.5 stars

I don't know about you, but when I'm feeling like a raincloud, I usually like to pick myself up with a sweet and fluffy contemporary. THE WAY YOU MAKE ME FEEL is the perfect example of one such book. *I received an e-ARC from Netgalley before its release, but all of my opinions are my own.

The basic premise of this book is that Clara Shin, our MC, has to spend her summer working on her dad's food truck, KoBra when she'd rather be doing anything else. To make matters worse, she's stuck working with Rose Carver, an overachieving classmate who she really doesn't get along with. Forced to cook alongside a girl she rather despises, Clara acts out more than once and while she's not always "likeable," I'd be lying if I said I didn't empathize with her. Working at KoBra she also meets Hamlet, the male love interest who isn't Clara's usual type. Between her new friendship with Rose, her blooming romance with Hamlet, and the evolution of Adrian and Clara's father-daughter relationship, Clara grows immensely by the end.

There are so many things about this book that make it exceptional to me. I should first address the diversity, which is important, especially because all of the main characters are people of color. Adrian Shin is a Korean-Brazilian immigrant (the story takes place in California) and so was Clara's mom. Hamlet, the love interest is Chinese. And Rose Carver is African American. The fact that we are now in an age where an entire cast of protagonists are POC should not be ignored. (And on the cover! I mean, can we acknowledge how beautiful that cover is for a moment!)

What took this story from good to great for me was in fact these characters. Maurene Goo crafted them so well. All of the people in Clara's life feel wonderfully real and elevate what might have otherwise been an average plot. In fact, it's Clara's unlikeability coupled with the sweetness of her relationship with Adrian that nearly made this a five-star book for me. While reading, I kept comparing Clara to Haley from STICK IT because both girls have a habit of acting tough, aloof, and sometimes cruel just to protect their feelings. Clara's parents had her when they were barely out of school and quickly separated, so her relationship with them is a little different than most people around her. Her mom is the fun one, a social media influencer who is constantly jetsetting around the world and sharing it on instagram live. Her father then was the one who raised her, and Adrian Shin's cavalier attitude doesn't always work in his favor. Instead of gushing into oblivion, I'll just summarize this by saying these two stole my entire heart and Adrian Shin is officially my favorite YA dad.

This was such an addictive and consuming read filled with characters that kept me engaged throughout, so at this point you might be wondering why I gave this 4.5 instead of 5. The thing is, even though this is close to perfect, the romance was easily my least favorite part of the story. Hamlet is such a wholesome bean and I love him, but I didn't think he and Clara were completely believable as a couple. Hell, even if they weren't queer, I cared much more about Rose and Clara as a duo in general but I thought there was some seriously missed potential with a f/f relationship. Once Hamlet shows up Clara nearly becomes another character overnight (thankfully this is addressed and there is a really great 'regression' scene that rang true) and I was never as invested in their relationship as was with the others. I think if TWYMMF would've solely focused on the relationships with Adrian and Rose, it would've been tighter. That said, I still fully plan on buying a copy of this book and reading it whenever I'm feeling down.

This book gave me all the warm fuzzies and I would recommend it to contemporary fans and nonbelievers alike.

Sooo good!! Beautiful summer read for anyone wanting a little family angst with their summer romance (but not too much angst, really).

Also didn’t realize her shirt actually has the KoBra food truck on it! [The novel is about Clara avoiding suspension by working for her father’s Ko(rean)Bra(zillian) food truck with her school-nemesis and a cute guy working the coffee kiosk next door.]

Although I was secretly rooting for Clara and Rose to get together (and a little annoyed when handsome and genuine Hamlet came into the picture, but honestly he is too precious to really be annoyed at) their friendship and the romance with Hamlet was still really cute. But really I love this book for the father/daughter/mother relationship and Clara’s overall growth. We don’t often get to read about young women learning to get in touch with who they really are through the love and friendship of others. Usually the girl is the one trying to find the good in the guy.

What I liked:

-Clara’s character growth. Although I can see how her changes can seem abrupt or superficial, I think there are many instances when we can glimpse the goodness in Clara even before she starts out the summer. The novel is a real bildungsroman about her learning how to be vulnerable enough to let others see the good and caring side of her.

-Adrian, Clara’s father. just. such a good dad, tried so hard to be a good parent to make up for her absent mother.

-The beautiful friendship with Rose! Rose is such a fascinating character and I really wish we got more insight into her. I don’t want to give too much away, but she is just super awesome and I am sooooo glad that we got to know her and that Clara gave her a chance and so they could form such a lovely affirming relationship. There is a lot more to Rose than meets the eye and I hope they stay friends forever and ever.

-Hamlet. He is such an adorable and genuinely great human being that I wish all love interests were just as sweet. Generally not a fan of insta-love, but I don’t know, I feel like Hamlet is not capable of hurting anyone on purpose and of course he would fall head over heels immediately. Also, I know that I’m all for the sassy and snarky “bad-boy” with a heart of gold, but Hamlet was just so cute and funny and I wanted to hug him and be his friend and root for him and Clara. *spoiler alert; anyone not ashamed to take their first date to dinner at their grandparents gets a few extra points in my book.*

-Diversity! We’ve got Clara’s family, daughter of two Korean-Brazilians, one a food-truck restauranteur and the other a social media influencer . Rose, daughter to two successful Black lawyers, and her mother is more successful and higher profile than her father plus she’s also beautiful. Hamlet, son of wealthy Chinese entrepreneurs and being raised by his grandparents. Plus! anxiety representation.

-Contemporary-ness. There were so many good references to actual contemporary things that made me laugh. I’ve read other contemporary books that didn’t quite capture teenage-hood in the mid-twenty-teens. [But also universal immigrant experiences like acknowledging that a dishwasher can be used as a drying rack, or for storage, rather than as a dishwasher.]



What I didn’t like:

-Rose and Clara did not end up together. Their friendship was cute, they learned a lot from each other, and I really did like Hamlet because he complemented Clara really well, but Rose could have also been a good romance option.

-The world of social media influencers just seems so fake and gag-worthy and there were scenes where Clara’s boundaries and needs as a minor were not respected and that kind of made me uncomfortable. Her mother was trying too hard to be a good famous person and mother that she missed out on being a real human being.


Thanks to NetGalley for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I didn’t like this book as much as I expected to, because I had issues with the main character.

That’s Clara Shin, whose main pastime seems to be not caring too much about anything. When a prank she pulls at prom leads to a fight with her high school nemesis, Rose, and a fire at the school, the two of them are punished by having to work together on Clara’s father’s Korean-Brazilian food truck for the entire summer. Neither of them is happy about it, but as they spend time together, the two of them become friends. Clara also meets a cute guy named Hamlet who is just so nice that she can’t resist him when he asks her out, even though he’s not her type. Under the influence of Rose and Hamlet, Clara starts to question whether she’s really satisfied with how she lives her life.

Clearly, life lessons will be learned and Clara changed by the end of the book. I liked the way the author handled Clara’s growth in general, although I do think that change happens too quickly, given that her problems are rooted in her mother’s virtual abandonment of her daughter. That’s a pretty deep rooted pain to come to terms with over the course of a summer, in my opinion. I also liked the way the relationship between Clara and her father was written, as well as the characters of both Rose and Hamlet.

Unfortunately, I didn’t always like Clara, and that’s a problem, since the book is written in first person. She is kind of rude and insensitive in her behavior toward other people, to the point that I wasn’t sure why anyone would want to be around her at times. She also treats her supposed friends horribly, and that’s something that I have a really hard time with in a character. When she becomes friendly with Rose and starts dating Hamlet, she begins the process of dumping her old friends. Yes, she feels some guilt about it, but she does it anyway, without really giving them much of a chance to try to come to terms with the new Clara. Then, later in the book, when she gets mad at her father and runs off to visit her mother, she sends Hamlet and Rose a couple of texts and then nothing, coming pretty close to ghosting them entirely. They wind up letting her off the hook really easily when she apologizes, which bugged me, since that’s an awful thing to do to someone who cares about you.

The book isn’t bad—some of the scenes in the book were pretty great—but Clara just rubbed me the wrong way. I’m going to have to try another novel by the author to see if it’s just this book that doesn’t work for me, I think.

A copy of this book was provided through NetGalley for review; all opinions expressed are my own.

Thought I wasn’t going to be able to finish this book before it got taken off the site so I tried to push through and read as long as I could. However, I just could not connect with these characters. From the first chapter nothing really “drew me in” to keep me reading so I had to put it down after a while. Thank you for the opportunity!

First of all, how gorgeous is this cover? Second, this was genuinely one of the most heartwarming novels I have read in a very long time, and I hope that every YA contemporary fan will pick it up and give it a shot!

I HATED WHEN MY DAD GENDERED THE STUPID TRUCK. TO RETALIATE, I CALLED MY BOOBS BROCK AND CHAD, WHICH MY DAD HATED WITH EQUAL FERVOR.
thewayyoumakemefeelsm

First of all, Clara is absolutely hilarious. She’s so awkward, and cynical, and weird, and her sense of humor is so similar to the way mine was at that age that I immediately clicked with her. She’s horribly sarcastic, to the point of obnoxiousness, because she doesn’t want to get hurt by the world around her, and that was a big part of my outlook on the world at that age, too.

I LOOKED AT ROSE. “LET HER TELL THE STORY. SHE’S REALLY UNBIASED, LIKE FOX NEWS.”
Not only was her sarcasm so fun to read for me, but she’s constantly making these quips with quiet, tongue-in-cheek commentary on the current sociopolitical climate, as well as race issues and discriminatory struggles going on in the US, that I found myself more than once laughing as I nodded along to the points she made. Honestly, I could go on for a while about how much I just loved Clara all on her own.

UPON CLOSER INSPECTION, THE LABRADOR WAS VERY GOOD-LOOKING. NOT MY TYPE AT ALL—I USUALLY FELL FOR GUYS WHO LOOKED A LITTLE MALNOURISHED AND TORTURED.
Hamlet, the Chinese teen who runs the coffee shop beside one of Clara’s father’s food truck stops, is so genuine and caring that it’s hard not to appreciate his character. He’s a little bit intense and insta-lovey, but the fact that Clara keeps a level head on her shoulders managed to balance it out for me. I honestly enjoyed the romance, more than anything, for how mature it was. For example, in most YA contemporaries, the love interest opening doors for another girl is going to be painted as sketchy, but in this book, Clara outright acknowledges the fact that she loves how polite he is (and the fact that “he would do it for a man, too” is icing on the gender-role-slaying cake).

“THE FIRST WOMAN PRESIDENT HAS TO HAPPEN IN MY LIFETIME, OR I’M GOING TO LIGHT THIS ENTIRE PLANET ON FIRE.”
Next, enter Rose, who is the other half of one of the best enemies-to-besties friendships I have ever seen in any book. Things start off super volatile and I was worried it would be girl-on-girl hate all the way through, but they actually quickly find their rhythm, learn that neither girl is what they appear to be on the surface, and become the cutest little set of friends. Rose also provides a fantastic bit of talk regarding how tough it is to be a black woman in a world where she is always expected to look and act perfect, as well as how exhausting it can be to be the child of prominent community leaders and activists.

SOMETIMES TEENAGERS REALLY SCARED THE CRAP OUT OF HIPSTERS. IT WAS LIKE THEIR TENUOUS HOLD ON “COOL” WAS EXPOSED AROUND THE TRULY YOUNG.
One of the best things about this book, though, was the descriptions of food: positively mouthwatering! My stomach grumbled so many times while reading, between the descriptions of the amazing foods the KoBra sold, as well as the dishes that Hamlet’s grandmother created. Not only are the food descriptions on point, but so are the descriptions of LA. This book reads at times like a love song to Los Angeles, and it made me want to visit so badly I could barely stand myself.

I REALIZED RIGHT THEN—HOW DISAPPOINTED YOU COULD BE WHEN YOU WERE ALL IN WITH SOMEONE. WHEN YOU CARED SO DEEPLY. HOW YOUR HEART COULD BREAK, SO PRECISELY AND QUICKLY.
The last positive I want to touch on is Adrian, Clara’s father, who was worth five stars all on his own. He’s hilarious, loving, protective without being overbearing, and has been stuck raising Clara on his own her entire life while her mother travels the world as a social media influencer. He’s flawed and human, and makes mistakes, but their relationship is so adorable and precious. It’s one of the healthiest and happiest parent/child relationships I’ve ever seen in YA, and it had me shamelessly crying for pages on end in the last few chapters!

“HOW IS THAT LEGAL? WHAT HAS THIS COUNTRY COME TO? OH, BETTER NOT LET IN REFUGEES, BUT SURE, HEY, LET A MINOR FLY TO CENTRAL AMERICA!”
I do have a few minor complaints: the writing could use a little bit further refining in the dialogue (as it is sometimes slightly stilted and awkward), and I sometimes had a hard time believing that certain activities in the book were legal. There’s also a scene in which Clara is allowed to get extremely drunk and videos are posted on the internet of her, by adults, and there is never any sort of recourse for the adults contributing to her underage drunkenness and public foolishness. I don’t have a problem with underage drinking in books, but I do have a problem with it going unaddressed, and I’m hoping maybe that’s something that will be wrapped up a little bit more cleanly in the finished copy.

All in all, though, this was such a fun read—I give it a solid 4.5 stars (rounding up, because I must have loved it to gush this much about it!) and have already pre-ordered my finished copy and can’t wait to add it to my shelf. ♥

All quotes come from an advance copy and may not match the final release. Thank you so much to Farrar, Straus and Giroux for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review!